First Win2000 Fix Out

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First Win2000 Fix Out

Just one day after trumpeting Windows 2000 as the solution for business, Microsoft issued its first update to the OS that adds compatibility with 45 popular games.

The compatibility update also includes one hardware fix, adding support for Iomega Zip drives connected to the parallel port.

Company officials said the patch will help Windows 2000 work better with applications. Microsoft’s own FrontPage 98, a Web page building application, is on the list of programs that are helped by the patch. But the bulk of the list is mostly games, such as Creature 3, F22 Lightning III, and Mageslayer.

A Microsoft spokesman said the company was focused on Windows 2000 compatibility with top business applications up until now. But with two months of extensive beta testing behind the product, Microsoft was able to expand testing to consumer titles.

That is important, since even though Windows 2000 targets business users, Microsoft officials said they expect it will also make its way into in the hands of home users.

One analyst said it's not surprising.

"It's very difficult to have an OS that won't exist in both places if it's on a PC, because the equipment exists in both the home and workplace," said Rob Enderle, senior analyst with the Giga Information Group. "Some people who use it at work also want to use the same OS at home. This is not an uncommon situation."

Microsoft gave no schedule for future compatibility releases. Windows 2000 still has a number of acknowledged application incompatibilities, including AOL 4.0 and early versions of Microsoft’s own MSN portal.